Had to Google the L2D (didn't see it on the Fenix site), and looks like new ones would run you about $50+ per unit... so, yeah, more light can be had cheaper. But you'll have to invest in some 18650 lithium-ion cells and charger to achieve the higher output and/or longer run times. I recently got a new light, 2 cells, a bar mount, and charger for less than $50.

If you still had them, no sense in 'upgrading', but since you gave them away...

Originally Posted by Cyril

Ride what and in what manner pleases you. Those that mind don't matter, and those that matter don't mind. srsly.

Welcome to the world of flashaholics! Lights don't care about battery chemistry. They are about voltage and available current. 18650 batteries are the same lithium ion batteries used in laptops. They can be dangerous. You should read about batteries at batteryuniversity.com. Check out the "Best light under $50" thread. There are many threads here about what 18650 flashlights people use. Magicshines are popular too, but these are lights with wires and a battery pack. If you are interested about cheap flashlights in general, budgetlightforum.com is the best site. You came here asking a question and leave with a new hobby :-)

I've got a L2D and a Terralux that take AAs. The Terralux was half the price of the Fenix, and puts out more light - I'd get 2 of those instead of 1 of the Fenix if I was going to buy another AA light. But I'd go the 18650 route instead of getting another AA light.

The L2D is ancient by today's standards... what, a Luxeon III emitter? Might as well be rolling with halogens there. There are modern upgrades; the direct successors to the L2D are the LD20 and more recent LD21, which use XR-E and XP-G emitters. They're about twice as bright. The most powerful 2xAA light I know of that's not a gimmick is the 4Sevens Quark 2AA X, which puts out 280 ANSI lumens, which is considerably higher than the 180 of the LD20 line (due to new measuring standards, its probably comparable to 320+ compared to the older Feninx measurements). That said, its much easier to get high power out of a light running off an 3.7V Lithium-Ion battery (18650 is a common size).
A light using a 26650 battery will be more powerful still due to having higher current draw/capacity + more heat sinking capability: http://www.keygos.com/product_info.php?products_id=952

My pick is the XP-G version of the S-Mini: http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...sh-G-R5/Detail The XP-G model has more of a center-weighted beam than the XM-L, which is floody (I have one of each). The medium output is about the same as a Fenix L2D on Turbo, which will run a Fenix dead in about 1:45, versus over 6 hours for the S-Mini. At full power, it'll run about 2 hours to auto-shutdown. In a completely dark environment, I can use Medium.

Because the S-Mini doesn't have any flanges on its body, it can slip through a strap-type holder. If you get one, I recommend using a rubber band around it as well. It's very compact and lightweight, about 90 grams with the battery installed.

www.lighthound.com
Order the Solarforce L2 body, your choice of low voltage (0.7-4.2v) drop-in light engines, 2-3 AW 18650 batteries, 1 Ultrafire w139 charger and a twofish mount block and you will be good to go. Don't buy the higher voltage drop ins, as you will be under-driving them on a single 18650.

vic, do the "Low Voltage" drop-ins still have multiple modes when used with a Lithium Ion? A lot of lights that have that type of voltage range (typically seen in 1xAA/1x14500 or 1xCR123/1x16340 lights) direct drive when used with a 3.7-4.2V Li-Ion, which gives phenomenal output for about 30 minutes before shutting off.
I have a Solarforce L2 with a 3.7V XM-L engine, which is a linear reg, and it drives at about 1.3-1.4A. This means its producing 400-500lm, which is way less than the advertised 820 but also reasonable for the heat dissipation of the host and the amount of runtime it gets.
If you're willing to wait a week or so for the parts to arrive, I also recommend the solarfoce-sales website, they're cheaper than the US-based sellers and that's where I got my first batch of Solarforce stuff.

In my experience, the Jet Beam BA20 is the best value in AA lights. There are AA lights that are brighter, such as the Sunwayman M40A (600 lumens), but it's also over 3 times the price (~$40 vs. ~$140).

The Jet Beam is brighter than the Fenix AA lights (I have two of the 180 lumen AA lights, an older model and a newer model). The Jet Beam is rated to put out 270 lumens. I don't know how accurate that is, but it is noticeably brighter than my Fenix lights. It is roughly the same size as my Fenix lights.

My pick is the XP-G version of the S-Mini: http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...sh-G-R5/Detail The XP-G model has more of a center-weighted beam than the XM-L, which is floody (I have one of each). The medium output is about the same as a Fenix L2D on Turbo, which will run a Fenix dead in about 1:45, versus over 6 hours for the S-Mini. At full power, it'll run about 2 hours to auto-shutdown. In a completely dark environment, I can use Medium.

Because the S-Mini doesn't have any flanges on its body, it can slip through a strap-type holder. If you get one, I recommend using a rubber band around it as well. It's very compact and lightweight, about 90 grams with the battery installed.

+1 This is a great helmet light! Combine it with a XM-L flashlight on the bars and you are golden. Solarforce is a quality, low priced brand.

wow didnt see all those replies till now
and had no idea the L2D is soooo outdated .... it was good to me. But you can never have too much light !
i will have to go over all those suggestions and see whats what

True story: I took my S-Mini on a daytime ride in case we ended up in twilight. It sneaked out of its strap mount somewhere on a 75-mile ride. And at the time, it was out of production for a while. I liked it enough to retrace the route the next day in a long-odds search for a little black light about the size of a CO2 cylinder, and discovered it on the highway shoulder about 65 miles into the route

Anyway, that's where the advice about a rubber band as a "keeper" comes from

The L2D is pretty outdated now, but there's another thing to think about that hasn't been mentioned yet. And that's the benefit of using a common battery like the AA. I wouldn't want to go back to only using the AA to power my lights, but after living through a 3 day power outage last year I was glad to be able to swap batteries in some of my lights while not having to worry about recharging batteries. So my answer would be to by more lights, but make sure you end up with at least 1 that uses AAs.